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Perpetrators of serious and organised crime are to be hit harder and faster in the pocket under plans recently unveiled by the UK and Scottish Governments.
The UK Government has published details of its Serious Crime Bill, which will provide the National Crime Agency and others with greater powers to prosecute those responsible for serious and organised crime, deny them the proceeds of their illegal activity and effectively tackle cybercrime and the illegal drugs trade.
As the legislation is reserved, the Scottish Government has asked that the following measures be included in the Bill:
- Tougher prison sentences for failing to pay confiscation orders.
- Enabling assets to be frozen faster and earlier in investigations.
- Ensuring confiscation orders are in place for those who abscond before being convicted.
- Requiring judges to consider attaching overseas travel bans to restraint and confiscation orders.
In addition, the Bill contains three Scotland-only measures:
- Ensuring confiscation orders are not stopped as a result of offenders serving default sentences.
- Creating new offences for breach of specific orders used during civil confiscation cases. This will make it less likely for assets to be broken up during a case.
- Establishing the role of administrators to allow more cost-effective management of property held during civil confiscation cases.
The Bill also brings forward the new offence in England and Wales of ‘participation in an organised crime group’. This aims to deter those assisting in criminal activity and is already in place in Scotland through the Criminal Justice and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2010.
If you require specialist criminal defence advice on this or any other matter, give us a call on 01383 730466 (Dunfermline) or 01592 640680 (Kirkcaldy) or contact us online here.
